Educate and illuminate: understanding the new hormonal landscape. Introduction: why hormones matter ; Getting started: fill out the questionnaires ; A hormonal primer: everything you need to know about hormones ; Perimenopause: your own personal global warming crisis, hypervigilance, and tighter jeans -- Assess, diagnose, treat: from imbalance to ideal hormonal specimen. High and/or low cortisol: stress case? is life without caffeine not worth living? ; Low-progesterone blues and progesterone resistance: heavy periods, PMS, insomnia, and infertility? ; Excess estrogen: depressed and chunky? ; Low estrogen: are you dry and cranky? ; Excess androgens: do you have pimples, ovarian cysts, and rogue hairs? ; Low thyroid: weight gain, fatigue, and mood problems? ; Common combinations of hormonal imbalances ; Hormonal nirvana: staying on course -- Appendix.